Speaker: Another session to reconsider vote on HB 17-226

House Speaker Eli Cabrera (R-Saipan) said yesterday that he will call for a House session to entertain a motion to reconsider Thursday’s vote to override the governor’s veto of House Bill 17-226, saying he will not stop until they have exhausted all options to allow non-retired members of the NMI Retirement Fund to withdraw up to 50 percent of their contributions.

Cabrera, author of HB 17-226, said he hopes they will be able to get at least 14 votes to successfully override the veto.

On Thursday, the “yes” votes totaled only 11, and six voted “no,” while three were absent.

“I hope we can count on those who were not present the last time, and some of those who voted ‘no.’ I hope they reconsider their votes,” Cabrera told Saipan Tribune.

Those absent during Thursday’s session were Reps. Teresita Santos (Ind-Rota), Janet Maratita (Ind-Saipan), and Ray Yumul (R-Saipan).

Santos, according to Cabrera, supports an override, while Maratita is not expected to return on island until sometime end of June. Yumul, he said, voted against the compromise version of HB 17-226 and the speaker said there’s no telling what his vote will be this time.

The speaker said there might be others who could change his vote on the override from “no” to “yes.”

HB 17-226 allows active members of the Fund’s defined benefit plan to take back up to 50 percent of their employee contributions regardless of years of service and without penalty or the need for them to quit their job. The rest of their employee contributions will be rolled over to a defined contribution plan.

Rep. Frank Dela Cruz (R-Saipan), one of the six who voted “no” to the override, separately said yesterday that he welcomes another session wherein a motion to reconsider could be brought up.

“The House rules allow for that. But that can be debated,” Dela Cruz said in an interview at his office.

Dela Cruz said he thinks an override of the governor’s veto will still not succeed the second time around. “It needs 14 votes. I don’t think the outcome will be different,” he added.

House Rules 10 Section 6, “Motion to Reconsider,” reads: “When a main motion has been made once and carried in the affirmative or negative, it shall be in order for any member of the House to move to reconsider it on the same or succeeding day of the session during the appropriate order of business. The motion to reconsider is debatable. A simple majority shall be required for passage. When a motion for reconsideration has been defeated, a second motion for reconsideration of the same question shall not be in order.”

Lt. Gov. Eloy S. Inos, meanwhile, described as an “exercise in futility” the House’s decision on Thursday to go on with the override without ensuring there’s enough votes for it.

“Why grandstand?” he asked, adding that dozens of government employees had to show up at the House session, during government hours and on government resources, only to witness the override’s defeat.

Inos repeated his call for the Legislature to work with the administration on a “better plan.” He said active members will be able to get up to 100 percent of their contributions if the buyback into the Social Security system does not push through, but for now, he said, he calls on lawmakers to rally behind the Social Security plan. Inos said it is the government’s responsibility to look after the welfare of its people, and make sure there’s a safety net for them when they retire.

Some 100 employees that filled the House lobby and chamber on Capital Hill on Thursday afternoon expressed disappointment over the defeat of the override.